The one with the hostage situation
by miamac
Summary: Funny how a hostage situation in a bank can lead to unsaid feelings being said, and everyone becoming closer. The friends visit a bank in Las vegas and it is held up. A hostage situation ensues.  Includes some violence. Will typically be Mondler centric.
1. The new girl

**This is just me kinda setting the scene and getting used to writing the characters. Does not have much to do with the whole hostage situation except for the Vegas part. Please tell me what you think about the characterizations! I'll continue if I think people are reading it hehe! :)**

"God this week has just been the worst," Rachel sighed as she removed her apron and slumped into a chair at coffee perk near her friends. They were all sitting at their usual spot, arguing about some movie that Rachel had never even heard of.

"What's wrong Rach?" Ross asked, looking up from the newspaper he was reading, open on the crossword page as per usual. She wondered whether he ever bought the paper just to read it. Maybe it was some manly thing, like her compulsive need to shop.

"Well first I get set up on a blind date with a guy who spends all evening talking about the oxford comma, thank you for that by the way Chandler," she began, shooting daggers at her friend who was sitting on the sofa with his arm casually draped around Monica's shoulder, "Then, I get a rejection letter from another potential job, and finally I get a call from my dad saying he wants to come over next week to talk about my future in New York. I know this is just going to be another of those long 'you can't make it on your own' speeches that I really don't need at the moment."

She slumped forward angrily, her hands massaging her temples before she reached for a coffee cup sitting on the table in front of her. After a quick sip she spat it out, disgusted at the unusually bitter taste on her tongue.  
>"Ugh, what the hell is this?" she asked in disgust, glaring down at the coffee cup and wishing she had something sweet to wash it down with.<p>

"Coffee. I understand why you'd be confused, working at a coffee house you must not deal with it often," Chandler replied sarcastically, before snatching the coffee cup back and taking a sip himself.

"It tastes different," she replied, sitting back and just wondering of some way she could cheer herself up. The only thing she could think of included a credit card, which unfortunately she had given up when she had first moved in with Monica in order to really become independent. God she was an idiot.

"Good, you mean?" Chandler drawled, laughing to himself until he caught the venomous look Rachel was giving him.

"Give her a break, Chandler, it's been a tough week," Monica chided him, before looking up guiltily, "but yeah the coffee is particularly good today, anyone know why that is?"

"The hot new waitress, I'd bet," Joey grinned, before once again gazing at the tall blonde beauty that was serving people behind the counter, "I think I'm going to get more coffee."

Rachel turned and gave the new girl another of the many glares she had deemed fit to give her that day. Gunther had hired her the week before but this was her first day, and she seemed to be pretty perfect at everything she did.

"Just another thing to add to my list of why this week sucks," Rachel moaned, " Everyone loves the new girl, she's pretty, funny, efficient, brings everyone the right order…and apparently she makes good coffee too."

"Well, at least you've still got Vegas," Ross muttered from behind his newspaper.  
>"Vegas?" Rachel asked in confusion before realising what he meant, "Of course, the weekend break!"<p>

They were all going away to Vegas for the weekend, one of Joey's many sisters had an apartment there and was loaning it them. It would be a pretty tight squeeze in the two bedroom place but they had planned to bring a whole bunch of blankets with them to make up beds on the floor. Rachel smiled as she thought of her and her friends all spending a weekend in Vegas, joking around, going for drinks then spending all night together in the apartment. Of course, now she came to think about it that did not seem to be that different to what they normally did. But still, a change in scene would definitely suit her.

"Is it okay if I come over to yours a bit earlier, Mon?" Phoebe asked, "I have my suitcase right here, I had to leave early this morning because the fat guy living on top of me decided to invite a lady friend over last night. I thought the ceiling was going to collapse, it was terrible."

"Yeah sure, so everyone meet at mine at seven, okay?" Monica confirmed before getting up to get another amazing coffee from the new girl.


	2. Pants, shirts, shoes and Monica

**Last chapter I didn't really know where I was taking this story but now I kind of have a plan, which is odd for me! Decided to make this very Chandler/ Monica related but not entirely focused on them. I have a huge thing for Chandler so you have to get used to reading lots of Chapters devoted around him. I'm sorry that there isn't much going on in this chapter but I had to set the scene... I promise that next chapter things start to happen. :')**

That week had not been particularly great for Chandler, either. He mulled it over in his mind as he began to pack the small suitcase he was going to take on their weekend break. It had nothing to do with his job or his family, granted neither of those were much cause for celebration, but that was nothing new.

No, the thing that had him worrying that week was his single status, and not for the usual reasons. He was used to being single, he was Chandler for crying out loud… it was a miracle when a girl so much as looked at him let alone deemed to date him. At that moment, though, being single was bothering him, mainly because he had a crush on someone. That someone was not some random girl he could ask out and get turned down by… but his best friend's sister.

As he dug through his drawers to look for something semi-decent to wear that weekend, his thoughts once again shifted to earlier that day in coffee perk. It had felt so good to have his arm around her… It just felt right to have her small petite frame leaning into him. God she smelt so good, a mix between baking bread and lavender. She knew the latter was due to her favourite perfume, but the baking bread was something that she always seemed to carry around with her, probably because she was always cooking. His thoughts shifted to another memory of her… one of her concentrating as she kneaded dough for some pastry she was making. She had flour on her nose, a tiny spot on the tip, and he had reached out and wiped it off for her.

Pants, shirts, shoes, Monica.

He shook his head clear of her: this was getting ridiculous. All week he had thought of her like this and he could not concentrate on any tasks. He had been fine seven days ago, great in fact, he thought he was finally getting over Monica. Then Richard had broken up with her… and now he was back to square one. He silently cursed Richard for not wanting children. The day after Carol and Susan's wedding at around six in the morning, Chandler had found Monica at his front door with tears streaming down her cheeks.

He took that entire day off work just to stay home and comfort her, Joey had an audition so he left early on and they were left alone. That day all the feelings he had been attempting to supress all came back to the surface. It was easy not to like her when she was in a relationship with someone because he knew she was off limits. But when she was single and just sitting there crying in his arms, he could not help but wish she was his.

_Stupid_, he thought_, It's never going to happen… she's Monica and you're Chandler. You're sarcastic, unattractive and pathetic and she's funny, smart and beautiful. Keep packing your sweater vests and get over it._

"Hey man, you ready?" Chandler heard Joey shout from outside his bedroom.

"Yeah… just about done," he shouted back before placing a final pair of socks on top of the clothing pile in the suitcase and then zipping it up. He placed his head in his for a second, trying in vain to get Monica out of his head before having to see her. He could not just spend the weekend drooling at her, he had to act normal or the others would suspect something. Finally he sighed deeply before turning to get a drink from the kitchen, and was surprised to find Joey standing in the doorway of his bedroom with his arms folded across his chest.

"I know I'm terribly attractive, but there's no need to stare at me," Chandler joked before attempting to walk through the door. He was stopped as one of Joey's arm's shot out to bar the exit.

"Whats wrong," Joey asked. Chandler inwardly groaned at his friend's perceptiveness. Although Joey was not particularly book smart, he was definitely people smart. This was not the first time he had realised something was wrong with Chandler, he had a knack of looking past his best friend's wit and sarcastic sense of humour to see how he was really feeling. Of course, that could also be because Joey rarely understood Chandler's jokes.

"Nothing," he answered before once again attempting to slip past his friend.

"Man you've been acting weird all week. Tell me or you don't leave this room," Joey insisted, keeping his arm planted firmly on the door frame. For a second Chandler considered forcing his way past his friend, but he knew it would be in vain… he could just confront him about it later, and Joey was a lot stronger than he was so the chances of him managing were slim.

"It's Monica."  
>"Again?" Joey groaned, removing his arm from the doorway.<p>

"Yeah, its not something I can just turn off, you know. Since she broke up with Richard all these feelings have been coming back…" Chandler looked away from his friend as he said that, he did not like telling anyone about his problems, especially personal things such as his feelings.

"Chandler why don't you just ask her out?"

Joey made it seem so simple, like he could just go up to her and ask her out to dinner or something. Although to be fair for Joey it usually was that simple.

"I know that the group would get a kick out of seeing me getting turned down by yet another girl, but oddly enough I do have a smidge of self respect left. Surprising, I know," Chandler was often the butt of his friends jokes, which was fine since he usually did the same to them. It was all in good nature but considering the fact that he already had a low self esteem, it did not exactly help to improve the way he thought of himself.

"Give yourself more credit, you've been one of Monica's closest friends for years and you two get on really well. You'll never know until you try," Joey stated, placing his hands on his hips, "and I can't stand to see you moping. That girl I brought back on Wednesday was so sad after talking to you that she just left. Poor girl got no Joey love and poor Joey got nothing!"

Chandler chuckled, then stopped as he considered taking Joey's advice. They were all going to Vegas after all, what better time to ask her? She'd be relaxed, having fun. Maybe he could take her out one night while the others went to a casino and then… What? What did he expect to happen? For him to tell her and for her to forget who he was and say yes? He shook his head, forcing himself back to reality.

"Nah, I don't think so Joe… best leave things as they are," Chandler muttered before turning back to pick up his suitcase, "When are we supposed to meet at Monica's anyway?"  
>"Now! C'mon let's get going, and don't even think that this is the last you're hearing of this."<p> 


End file.
